Printing or other machine



June 14, 1938. w. c. scoTT 2,120,714

PRINTING OR OTHER MACHINE Filed June 11, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORATTORN EY June 14, 1938. w. c. scoTT PRINTING OR OTHER MACHINE FiledJune 11, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR (1 62m? Waller ATTO R N EYPatented June 14, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 20 Claims.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view substantially on the plane of line3-3 of Fig.

Referring to Fig. 1, A and B indicate a plurality of devices or units.For the purpose of arbitrarily distinguishing between these devices, Awill be referred to as the primary device, and B as secondary" devices.In the present case the plurality of devices or units is greater than.two, and consist of the printing and folding units of a printingmachine, the folding unit A of which constitutes here the primary deviceand the printing and perfecting units or couples B of which constitutehere the secondary devices. It is unnecessary to describe theoperationof a machine of this character except to say that webs are led to theprinting couples and are thereafter associated and folded in the foldingmechanism known as a former folder.

So far as certain features of the invention are concerned, the speedcontrol mechanism may take many forms but, preferably, the controlmechanism disclosed and claimed in my application Ser. No. 60,423, filedJanuary 23, 1936, will be utilized because, owing to its simplicity andeffectiveness, it constitutes an almost ideal mechanism for use inconnection with a printing or other machine where the speed of aplurality of units greater than two is to be coordinated. As a matter ofconvenience, therefore, and for the purpose of bringing out certainfeatures of the invention, the particular control mechanism hereemployed will now be described, it being understood that the inventionin all its aspects is not limited to the control mechanism so described.

The control mechanism is indicated by O and it will be noted that thereis a separate control mechanism associated with each of the secondaryunits or devices and, as will presently be explained, all the controlmechanisms are associated with the primary device or unit. Each controlmechanism consists of two control members x and Y arranged side by sideand inde- 4 is deeper than the other end 5.

It will be understood that, when bails and Y apart.

pendently rotatable in the same direction on supporting shaft 6. Atleast one of these com trol members, here Y, is movable sidewise axiallyand is normally urged toward the ot" member by a spring 2. Controlmember provided with a series of arcuate or segme: grooves 3 of taperformation, that is, one e Control n ber Y is provided with a continuoussurfa Balls '5 are located in grooves 3 of memb and engage continuoussurfacefi of memb in deep end t of the grooves, spring 2 will hm:members X Y close together but that, 1: the balls are in shallow end 5of the groove the oamming action of said balls will force me bers X andY apart against the tension of spr 2. The position of the balls. in thegrooves controlled by the relative speed of co oi me bers X and l, andit be understood that, so o long as the speed of member X is greater thor equal to that of member Y", the balls wi: main in the deep end of thegrooves but that, when the speed of member Y exceeds th member X, theballs will move toward the low end of the grooves and force membe Acontrol element Z is pivt. 1y supported at 8 and is normally urgedengagement with member 52' by spring 9 it will be understood that thesliding movem of Y eii'ects or permits a corresponding mo ment ofcontrol element 2, which movemenu be utilized to govern a clutch, arheostat, pulleys and belts or what-not as fully explal in my saidapplication Ser. No. 60,423 above ferred to.

As disclosed in my said application Ser. 60,423, the several devices orunits can he s arately driven from a single prime mover any suitablemeans through speed change me anisms such as the well-known Reeves (1which could then be under the control of cones elements Z. In thepresent disclosure the s eral units are not only separately driven aredriven from independent motors. As seem in'Fig. 1, motor C drives folderA by means suitable transmission means indicated at It, and. motors Ddrive printing units B by means of suitable transmission means indicatedat H, cylinders of each printing and perfecting couple being intergearedin the usual way. Folder A drives a shaft l2, extending along thedifferent units, by suitable transmission means l3, and control member Xof each control mechanism is driven from shaft I2 bysuitabletransmission means ll. Control member Y of each control mechanism isdriven from the printing and perfecting couple with which it isassociated by suitable transmission means I5. All the motors areconnected in parallel to leads L, and motor C can have its speedcontrolled by a suitable means such as rheostat R. The circuit of eachof motors D is here controlled by a rheostat R of which control elementZ forms the movable member. The desired relative speed is established bysuitable gear ratios. In some printing machines the folder runs at sayhalf the speed of the printing units, but in the present instance boththe folder and the printing units run at the same speedfand the gearratio, accordingly, is such that, when the folder and a printing unitrun at equal speed, control members X and Y also run at equal speed. Ifit were desired to run the folder say at one-half the speed of theprinting unit, the gear ratio. would be such that control members X andY would run-at equal speed when the folder runs at half the speedof theprinting unit.

It will now be understood that, when power is supplied to the machine,motors D will continue to accelerate so long as control member Y doesnot exceed the speed of control member X but that, so soon as it does,control element Z will cut in more resistance to thereby decelerate thespeed of motor D, be remarked that the amplitude of movement of controlelement Z may be such that power to motor D is cut off altogether whenthe speed of control element Y exceeds that of control element X,thereby causing motor D to run due to its own momentum until it hasdecelerated sufliciently, after which power is again applied.

It may also be pointed out that the circuit of each motor D can besupplied with a manually operated controlling mechanism such as rheostatR2.

Considering now the system as a whole, it will be seen that Fig. 1 showsa plurality of separately driven devices or units greater than two andthat the speed of a number of these devices or units, such as B, isindividually and simultaneously controlled with respect to the speed ofa single device or unit, such as A. It will further be seen that incarrying out the method of the above system there is employed aplurality of control mechanisms, such as O which are responsive tothe-speed of a primary device, such as A, and individually andsimultaneously responsive to the speed of the secondary devices, such asB, to individually govern the speed of devices B. In analyzing thesystem still more in detail, it will be seen that there is employed aplurality of control members, such as X and Y, which are arranged inpairs, the number of pairs being equal to the number of devices B, andthat means are employed to drive one control member of each pair at aspeed proportional to (not necessarily equal to) that of de-- vice A,together with means to drive the other control members of said pairs atspeeds proportional to (not necessarily equal to) those of devices B;and that means, such as elements Z, which are responsive to variationsin speed between the control members X and Y of, a pair, control thespeed of that device B which drives the member Y of that pair.

It will also be seen that the system contemplates the use of a shaft, asI! which is driven from a unit, as A, and a plurality of control .5mechanisms 0 for individually governing the andin this connection it mayspeed of units B, each of said units B being governed by a differentcontrol mechanism 0,

and that there are means to render all of the control mechanisms 0responsive to the speed of shaft l2 and each control mechanismresponsive to the speed of the unit B which it governs.

In the foregoing description it has been assumed that the direction ofrotation of members X and Y is as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 3; thatis, with shallow end 5 of slots 3 leading and deep end 4 trailing. Itwill, however, be understood that the direction of rotation could be thereverse of that indicated, in which event members X and Y would beseparated so long as the speed of X exceeds or is equal to that of Y butthat, when the speed of Y exceeds that of X, the two memlers wouldapproach each other. In these circumstances, the effect of the movementof element Z should be correspondingly altered.

I claim;

l. The method of obtaining a desired speed relationship of a pluralityof separately driven devices greater than two which consists inindependently but simultaneously controlling the speed of a plurality ofsuch devices with respect to the speed of a single device withoutaifectinfi the speed of the single device by the speed of the pluralityof devices.

2. A system of speed control including: a pri-' mary device; a pluralityof secondary devices driven separately from each other as well asseparately from the primary device; and a plurality of controlmechanisms responsive to the speed of the primary device andindividually and simultaneously responsive to the speed of the secondarydevices to independently govern the speed of the secondary devices butnot that of the primary device.

3. A system of speed control including: a primary device; a plurality ofsecondary devices driven separately from each other as well asseparately from the primary device; a plurality of control membersarranged in pairs, the number of pairs being equal to the number ofsecondary devices; means to drive one control member of each pair at aspeed proportional to that of the primary device; means to drive theother control memb ers of said pairs at speeds proportional to those ofthe secondary devices, each secondary device driving onecontrol member;and means responsive to variations in speed of the control members of apair to control the speed of that secondary device which drives a memberof that pair.

4. A system of speed control including: a plurality greater than two ofseparately driven units; a shaft; means to drive said shaft from one ofsaid units; a plurality of control mechanisms for individually governingthe speed of the remaining units, each of said remaining units beinggoverned by a different control mech-l anism; means to render all ofsaid control mechwith and governed by a diflerent control mechanism;means to render all of said control mechanisms responsive to the speedof the shaft; and means independent of said shaft to render each controlmechanism responsive to the speed of the unitwith which it is associatedand which it governs.

6. A system of speed control including: a plurality of printing unitsand a folding unit, separately driven; a shaft; means to drive saidshaft from the folding unit; a plurality of control mechanisms forindividually governing the speed of the printing units, each of saidprinting units being governed by a different control mechanism; means torender all of said control mechanisms responsive to the speed of theshaft; and means independent of said shaft to render each controlmechanism responsive to the speed of the printing unit which is governs.

7. The combination with a plurality ,of separately driven. units, of aplurality of control mechanisms all of which are responsive to the speedof one of said units and each of which is only responsive to the speedof a. different unit of the remaining ones; and means to control thespeed of said remaining units from said control mechanisms, each of saidremaining units being governed by a different control mechanism fromthat which governs any of the other remaining units.

8. The combination with a plurality of separately driven units forprinting and folding materlal, of a plurality of control mechanisms allof which are responsive to the speed of one of said units and each ofwhich is only responsive to the speed of a different unit of theremaining ones; and means to control the speed of said remaining unitsfrom said control mechanisms,

each of said remaining units being governed 'by a different controlmechanism from that which governs any of the other remaining units.

9. The combination with a plurality of printing units and a foldingunit, separately driven, of a plurality of control mechanisms all ofwhich are responsive to the speed of the folding unit and each of whichis only responsive to the speed of a different printing unit; and meansto control the speed of the printing units from said control mechanisms,each of said printing units being governed by a different controlmechanism from that which governs any of the other printing units.

10. The combination with a plurality, greater than two, of separatelydriven units for printing and folding material, of means responsive tothe speed of one unit for independently controlling the speed of theremaining units without affecting the speed of said one unit bythe'speed of the remaining units.

11. The combination with a plurality, greater than two, of separatelydriven units for printing and folding material, of means responsive tothe speed of one unit for simultaneously but independently controllingthe speed of the remaining units without ail'ecting the speed of saidone unit by the speed of the remaining units.

12. The combination with a plurality of printing units and a foldingunit, separately driven, of means responsive to the speed of the foldingunit for independently controlling the speed of the printing unitswithout ail'ecting the speed of the folding unit.

13. The combination with a plurality of printing units and a foldingunit, separately driven, of means responsive to the speed of the foldingunit for simultaneously but independently controlling the speed of theprinting units without affecting the speed of the folding unit.

14. The combination with a plurality of units for printing and foldingmaterial, of a motor for each unit, and means to control, by the speedof one motor, the speed of the remaining motors without controlling thespeed of the one motor by the speed of the remaining motors.

15. The combination with a plurality of operating units greater thantwo, of a motor for each unit, and means to control, by the speed of themotor of one unit, the speed of the motors of the remaining unitsWithout controlling the speed of the motor of the one unit by the speedof the motors of the remaining units.

16. A method of obtaining a desired speed relationship between a primarydevice and a plurality of secondary devices in which all of theaforesaid devices are separately driven and in which the secondarydevices are unresponsive to the speed of one another but areindependently and simultaneously responsive to the speed of the primarydevice, and in which the primary device is not responsiveto the speed ofthe secondary devices.

17. The method of obtaining a desired speed relationship of a pluralityof separatelydriven devices greater than two which consists inindependently but simultaneously controlling, with respect to the speedof one of said devices, the speed of the remaining devices, the speed ofsaid one device being uncontrolled by the speed of said remainingdevices.

18. A method of obtaining a desired speed relationship between aplurality of separately driven units greater than two in which-the speedof a plurality of subservient units is independently and simultaneouslycontrolled by the speed of a master unit and in which the speed of themaster unit is uncontrolled by-the speed of the subservient units.

a printing machine in which the speed of a plurality of subservientunits is independently and simultaneously controlled by .the speed of amaster unit and in which the speed of the master unit is uncontrolled bythe speed of the subservient units.

20. A system of speed control including: a primary device; a pluralityof secondary devices driven separately from each other as well asseparately from the primary device; a plurality of control mechanisms,one associated with each secondary device, each control mechanismincluding two rotatable control members that rotate independently ofeach other at all times; means to drive one control member of eachcontrol mechanism proportional to the speed of the primary device; meansto drive the other of said control members of each control mechanismpro-

